Problem with Lee push-through sizer dies

[d0n]

dOn,

On micrometers you can go in more than one direction. If you go digital you get what you pay for, If you do remember one thing. You go and get one and drop it somehow (and this always seems to happen) most of the time THAT'S IT. And for the sake of splitting hairs (arguing) lets say you get them and the battery goes out, how much does a new one cost now-a-days. Not to mention when you need it you need it NOW.

And your right about the second hand stuff, but in reality it's a cr@p shoot. You'll never ever know until after you bought it if it works right for you. I really wouldn't buy "NEW" because I can't imagine what they cost now. My other pair that I sold were Swiss made called ETALON very pricey at the time.

I probably won't be getting a digital micrometer. I'm going to try a second-hand one and just hope I get one that's been cared for.

[MGySgt]

RCBS Mould you used - Send it back to RCBS.

I have a 45-230 CM. When I first starting using it - all was fine. After about 1K of boolits it wasn't closing correctly.

I checked it and double checked it - the alignment pins were out too far. I called RCBS and sent it back. Got a new mould.

After about 1K of boolits with the new mould it wasn't closing right. Checked mould - it was the alignment pins. This time I adjusted them and all is now well and has been for the last 50K or so (I shoot it A LOT in my 625 45ACP).

By the way. I have the RCBS 270 - 45 - it is a great boolit for plinking in 45 Colt or hunting in 45 Colt. Just depends on how you load it. For hunting I like it a little over 1,000 FPS out of my 5.5 in RBH.

[462]

lol, my calipers are actually the Harbor Freight calipers that you speak of. I'm currently looking for a good price on a mic. I've never used one outside of shop class in 8th grade; is this something I can buy second-hand and expect to still work, or are the screw mechanisms delicate enough that I should buy new so I don't have to worry about how well the previous owner cared for it?

Actually, I mentioned a Harbor Freight micrometer, not a caliper.

[d0n]

Actually, I mentioned a Harbor Freight micrometer, not a caliper.

Sorry, didn't catch that. That's what I get for posting at work

[noylj]

d0n wrote: A micrometer is ten times more accurate than a caliper.
So, a caliper is good to 0.01", multiply by 10 and we get 0.1". That's not what you meant. This is a very hard thing to word correctly. Maybe we could say it has at least a 0.1 better resolution? Still not right, though. Very hard to word using colloquial English.

[d0n]

d0n wrote: A micrometer is ten times more accurate than a caliper.
So, a caliper is good to 0.01", multiply by 10 and we get 0.1". That's not what you meant. This is a very hard thing to word correctly. Maybe we could say it has at least a 0.1 better resolution? Still not right, though. Very hard to word using colloquial English.

I didn't write that. I get what you're saying though

[462]

I wrote it, and thanks for understanding what I meant. Maybe, someone with a scientific or machinist background can explain it better.

[wiljen]

A micrometer is capable of measuring things an order of magnitude more precisely than a caliper.

This means that a caliper with a +/- .001 average error could measure a .4527 slug and give you a result anywhere from .451 to .454 and still be within spec for the device.

A Micrometer with a standard of +/- .0001 would give a result between .4526 and .4528 for the same slug.

[flashhole]

Lee offers a .451, .452 and .454 push through sizer. My .401 is exactly that ... .401 if your die is producing bullets that measure .450 and you are confident in your measurement the die may be in error.

[cajun shooter]

I made comment about the Lee equipment as a answer to your breaking the linkage of your Lee press. My answer about the difference between a caliper and a micrometer was in answer to a early posting and further addressed by wiljen. I am sorry that I failed to cover the mould problem but you have been given that from another poster. Have a Nice Day

[Recluse]

To swage them down .004" to .005" you need copious LLA lube on the bullets & die and a heavy duty press like the Lee Classic Cast. Like gasboffer said, your mold is too big.

Yep. You're making the equipment do a job it was not designed to do.

If you want to size down more than .003, you probably want to do it in more than 1 step.

I have always needed lube whenever using a push through sizer.

I have a couple of boolits that I size down significantly as well, but I do it in steps--not all at once.

Never had a problem.

[MikeS]

Lee sizing dies only have a very narrow strip inside of them that sizes the cast bullets.

Are boolits sized better when the sizing portion of the die is wider? I have several of the Lee push thru sizers (the type that mount in a standard reloading press), as well as a few of the pound thru Lee sizers, and they all work exactly as they are designed to. Boolits springing back when sized soon after being cast is not something limited to the Lee sizers, but will happen with any sizer.

As for quality control, unfortunately it seems like most all companies in the reloading business have poor QC as is seen with the new Lyman moulds, and lately with RCBS & SAECO as well. It seems that to get a good boolit mould these days the smaller custom makers (Mihec, NOE, Accurate Molds, etc.) are the way to go, you get what you want, and with most of them, you can tell them what alloy you're using, and get moulds that will cast the proper diameter.

[flashhole]

I must be pretty lucky. The only real **** I've had amongst all the reloading equipment I own has come from Hornady. Tried to correct that situation with their customer service and was treated poorly.